Pan Amorama

Given the ghastly lighting of most movie rom-coms--where the actresses seem to be exposed to the glare of bad department store dressing rooms, even the most perfect pinky complexions given a washed-out glare--it was an immediate lift seeing how radiantly, glamorously framed and photographed the stewardesses of ABC’s Pan Am were, gliding through the airport as if it were their model runway. But where fashion runway models are unsmiling, robotic in their militant march steps, these stews smile like mod angels, their wings pinned to their snazzy blue jackets. No, Pan Am has none of the stomach-acid accidie of Mad Men--for primetime TV, it’s a far more formula drive--but it’s a wonderful throwback to Jean Negulesco films such as Three Coins in the Fountain and The Best of Everything. (Margot Robbie’s Laura Cameron, a flight attendant who lands on the cover of Life, is the Suzy Parker figure.) Nothing about Pan Am demands to be taken seriously and the espionage angle is an absurdity (even given the Cold War era), but everything was nicely done, and the crosscutting between adjoining hotel rooms of undressing lovers about to meet smack in the middle was elegantly, Europeanly sexy. It was also smart not to overuse the cast’s most recognizable face--Christina Ricci--in the premiere, but what we saw was tantalizing. Sixties style brings out a swingy side of Ricci that the dysfunctional movie comedies she was in never could, and her doll face here is like Esquire ad pop art. It and Ringer (CW) are the most enjoyable two new series I’ve seen so far, and if you missed Pan Am’s premiere you can watch it here.